UK retailer recreates customer’s wine-stain outfit

PrettyLittleThing was able to turn a viral social media post into a new dress design

Spotted: British online retailer PrettyLittleThing was able to turn a viral social media post into a new dress design.

It started when 19-year-old Eleanor Walton accidentally spilled red wine on her white jumpsuit whilst at the Ripon races. Her friend, Mia, salvaged the situation by masking the spill using even more wine, creating a tie-dye effect.

To create the final masterpiece, the jumpsuit was subjected to an additional five glasses of wine and dried for 20 minutes under a hand-dryer. Eleanor then proudly showed off her new outfit. A before and after photograph was posted on Twitter, which quickly became viral.

Aware of the traction Eleanor’s new outfit had gained, PrettyLittleThing decided to recreate the design. The retailer now sells an identical white and burgundy tie-dye jumpsuit on their website. The garment costs €40. PrettyLittleThing also credited the design by including Eleanor’s photograph on the product page.

so we’re 2 hours into the races, and el comes and tells me someone has spilt red wine down her… no problem. Got some more red wine and fixed it and I think we’ve just made a new product to PLTs festival range pic.twitter.com/fXnJKYfNc2

Takeaway:

Fashion brands must be highly-dynamic to keep up with the fast-paced fashion industry. For example, the diversity of trends in fashion is growing and the line between "fashion disaster" and "retro" is becoming finer. PrettyLittleThings is an example of how rapid adaptation and innovation can create a competitive advantage in this fast-evolving environment. It also will not hurt the brand's reputation when it comes to customer engagement.